Advice in how to handle low hp players

[Trickstergod]

Of course, also don't forget to do something similar to anyone who makes a dump stat out of Charisma.

Those with high Constitution may survive better, but it's the Charismatic one that everyone's going to automatically assume to be the hero, the leader, the general guy to go to.

I'm of the opinion min/maxing and optimization should be discouraged, not putting stats where they're most appropriate for the character to have them.

If the person just think's Constitution is a bad place to put a good stat, however...eh. Smack'im around a bit, just enough that he sees it's just about as important, if not entirely as important, as Strength.

 

[Hjorimir]

I suggest Fire Giants...at least that is what I'm going to be trying on Saturday!

 

[LordAO]

Advice on low HP characters?

Be gentle. They break easily.

 

[Norfleet]

Just pretend not to notice that he has low HP and Con. Deal out damage as usual, as if he had a regular Con. Just pretend not to notice. When he abruptly runs out of HP as a result, look surprised and dismayed, but refuse to reverse a perfectly legal outcome on the grounds that you'd have to do it for everyone else to.

Hand him a new character sheet.

 

[Rune]

Stirges, baby! Gotta love 'em!

 

[Ravellion]

Play as normal, let the players track their own hit points, and you won't even notice how soon he croaks. Perhaps reincarnate him as a Dwarf after he dies

Rav

 

[Dirigible]

I wish I had the luxury of killing my low HP PC...but I'm playing in a 1-GM, 1-Player campaign.

The PC is a highly unusual (not to say, monstrously unbalanced) chap : origionally form 2nd Ed, he's a 9th level half-vampire enchanter (who uses fighter BAB), and at the moment is a Fear Demi-Elemental (like a half-XYZ elemental, but originating from Ravenloft).

His damage-per-round, to quote KotDT, surpasses a carrier task force (Str high 20's, wielding a +4 keen katana that deals d12 as base damage...behold, the sword of twink... I think he churns out a average of 30 dam per turn against a fairly low AC foe).

However, he has the Con of a small halfling girl, and about 25 hp.

He dies so, so quickly in a stand up fight. Or indeed, anything he can;t kill in one hit.

As the campaign has moved into more recent, more dangerous realms, I find keeping him alive impossible. To keep the campiagn going, I've had to resort to a dreadfully inelegant solution : his patron has employed a high level necromancer to keep summoning and ressurecting his (the PC's) body.

So, any suggestions ? I can't let the PC die, as his heritage and destiny are utterly integral to the campaign (and, in any case, it would end if he died...obviously), but I want to make some attempt to keep the threat and danger of death viable...

Advice would we greatly appreciated.

 

[National Acrobat]

I've seen a lot of people suggesting to take out the players who have Con as a dump stat. That's fine. What would you suggest for DM's who have players who have Con without penalties, but who just have bad luck with dice?

I have a few characters in my group who have Con's above 11 but the dice hate them. One is a 13th level Fighter with 65 Hp. I know you aren't going to say she should be punished for random rolls of HP.

 

[Rune]

I wish I had the luxury of killing my low HP PC...but I'm playing in a 1-GM, 1-Player campaign.

The PC is a highly unusual (not to say, monstrously unbalanced) chap : origionally form 2nd Ed, he's a 9th level half-vampire enchanter (who uses fighter BAB), and at the moment is a Fear Demi-Elemental (like a half-XYZ elemental, but originating from Ravenloft).

His damage-per-round, to quote KotDT, surpasses a carrier task force (Str high 20's, wielding a +4 keen katana that deals d12 as base damage...behold, the sword of twink... I think he churns out a average of 30 dam per turn against a fairly low AC foe).

However, he has the Con of a small halfling girl, and about 25 hp.

He dies so, so quickly in a stand up fight. Or indeed, anything he can;t kill in one hit.

As the campaign has moved into more recent, more dangerous realms, I find keeping him alive impossible. To keep the campiagn going, I've had to resort to a dreadfully inelegant solution : his patron has employed a high level necromancer to keep summoning and ressurecting his (the PC's) body.

So, any suggestions ? I can't let the PC die, as his heritage and destiny are utterly integral to the campaign (and, in any case, it would end if he died...obviously), but I want to make some attempt to keep the threat and danger of death viable...

Advice would we greatly appreciated.

The lesson to be learned here is that, if you're the only PC, specialization will be the death of you.

Here's what I would do as the DM: Kill the character anyway (not purposefully, but without pulling punches, either). Then, have the character (as an NPC, at this point) resurrected by the bad guys and forced to do their bidding (or, even better, converted to their cause). Then the player would get to start the game with a new player related to the campaign (and, preferrably, the former PC) in a heretofore unknown manner. The campaign goes on and is all the more rich because of it.

 

[Marimmar]

Well as an enchanter he should learn not to engage in melee combat, even if he has the damage output to annihilate a third world nation. Your player seems to have died quite often recently so there seems to be no learning effect whatsoever. Solutions might be:

1) Cheesy, give him a +6 Con item for one of his still open item slots. This should put give him enough HPs for an average Lvl9 character.

2) Have his soul transferred to another human being while his old body gets destroyed in front of his eyes. He still has his old mental abilities but new physical scores.

~Marimmar